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Abstract

The starting point of this investigation is the properties of restricted quadratic forms, x^TAx, x {IS A MEMBER OF} S {IS A SUBSET OF} {m DIMERNSIONAL SPACE}, where A is an m x m real symmetric matrix, and S is a subspace. The index theory of Heatenes (1951) and Maddocks (1985) that treats the more general Hilbert space version of this problem is first specialized to the finite-dimensional context, and appropriate extensions, valid only in finite-dimensions, are made. The theory is then applied to obtain various inertia theorems for matricea and positivity tests for quadratic forms. Expressions for the inertial of divers symmetrically partitioned matrices are described. In particular, an inertia theorem for the generalized Schur complement is given. The investigation recovers, links and extends several, formerly disparate, results in the general area of inertia theorems.